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Cam Newton tried to tell everyone who would listen last week that the Carolina Panthers were much better than 0-2 — then went out and proved it.

Newton threw three touchdown passes and ran for another, and Carolina sacked Eli Manning seven times as the Panthers handed Tom Coughlin his worst defeat as coach of the New York Giants, 38-0. The Panthers posted the most lopsided victory in franchise history, eliminating questions about coach Ron Rivera’s job security entering the team’s bye week.

“I told a couple of guys we were past due for a win like this,” Newton said. “A win like this boosts our ego and gives us that swagger we need.”

Carolina’s previous best was a 34-0 win over Kansas City in 2008.

This one couldn’t have come at a better time for Rivera, especially after his team squandered fourth-quarter leads to Seattle and Buffalo. That dropped his record to 2-14 in games decided by seven points or fewer and raised speculation about his job.

Defensive end Greg Hardy, who tied a career high with three sacks in the first half, said if Rivera was feeling pressure to win he never let on to his players at practice: “He basically came out and said, ‘You know what, (to heck with) me, I’m here for you guys’ . . . It makes you want to play 10 times harder for him.”

The Giants have plenty of concerns as they prepare for next Sunday’s game against unbeaten Kansas City. Of the 161 teams that have started 0-3 since 1978, only five made the NFL playoffs, according to STATS.

A terse Coughlin said after the game: “Disappointed isn’t a strong enough word. I expected more.”

COLTS 27, 49ERS 7: Indianapolis QB Andrew Luck threw for 164 yards and ran for a six-yard touchdown while facing college coach Jim Harbaugh for the first time. Trent Richardson scored a one-yard touchdown on his first carry in his Colts debut after being acquired on Wednesday from the Browns. He was drafted two spots behind Luck at No. 3 last year. It was 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick’s his first home loss at Candlestick Park as a starter.

PATRIOTS 23, BUCCANEERS 3: Tom Brady threw two touchdown passes to Kenbrell Thompkins in New England’s one-sided win over Tampa Bay. Thompkins, an undrafted free agent, scored on plays of 16 and five yards in the first half. Aaron Dobson, a second-round draft pick, finished with seven catches for 52 yards. The Patriots (3-0) have allowed just 34 points this season.

SAINTS 31, CARDINALS 7: Drew Brees passed for three scores and scrambled for New Orleans’ first rushing touchdown of the season. The Saints quarterback was 29 of 46 for 342 yards, with two TD strikes to tight end Jimmy Graham and the other to Robert Meachem. The 3-0 Saints hadn’t opened a season with three straight victories since 2009, when they won the franchise’s only Super Bowl.

COWBOYS 31, RAMS 7: DeMarco Murray ran for 175 yards and a touchdown, his first 100-yard game in more than a year for Dallas. The Cowboys (2-1) sacked Sam Bradford four times in the first half and six overall — two by DeMarcus Ware, who broke Harvey Martin’s career franchise record of 114.

RAVENS 30, TEXANS 9: Daryl Smith had a 37-yard interception return for a TD, Tandon Doss took a punt 82 yards for another score, and Baltimore smothered Houston’s high-powered offence.

LIONS 27, REDSKINS 20: Matthew Stafford completed 25 of 42 passes for 385 yards with two touchdowns and one interception, and Calvin Johnson and Nate Burleson both had 100 yards receiving for Detroit, which beat Washington on the road for the first time since 1939. Robert Griffin III completed 32 of 50 passes for 326 yards and had his fourth interception of the season for winless Washington.

TITANS 20, CHARGERS 17: Jake Locker threw a 34-yard touchdown pass to rookie Justin Hunter with 15 seconds left, giving Tennessee its first win over San Diego since 1992, when the team was in Houston and Titans coach Mike Munchak was playing for the then-Oilers.

BROWNS 31, VIKINGS 27: Jordan Cameron caught three touchdown passes, including the go-ahead grab in the back of the end zone with 51 seconds left, and Cleveland kept Minnesota winless. Third-stringer Brian Hoyer threw for three scores for the Browns (1-2), the latest team to torch Minnesota’s depleted secondary.

SEAHAWKS 45, JAGUARS 17: Russell Wilson matched his career high with four touchdown passes — two each to Sidney Rice and Zach Miller — and Seattle improved to 3-0 for the first time since 2006.

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